House of Reps, PDP bicker over calls for Buhari’s impeachment

THE House of Representatives and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Monday bickered over the call for an impeachment process against President Muhammadu Buhari over the perceived failure of his government.

The spokesman of the House, Ben Kalu, had described as illogical, the call by a member of the PDP, Kingsley Chinda for the commencement of an impeachment process.

In a statement in Abuja, on Monday, the spokesman declared the call as a distraction to members, who were eagerly awaiting Buhari’s coming to the House for an interface with the lawmakers on efforts being made to tackle insecurity in the country.

Chinda had, in a press statement at the weekend, said that President Buhari had failed in his primary responsibility of protecting lives and properties in the country, urging Nigerians to compel their representatives to commence impeachment processes against him immediately.

The lawmaker also called on the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to declare the president incapacitated.

But reacting to the calls, the House spokesman, Kalu declared that Chinda did not speak for the lawmakers.

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It queried: “If this call came post-president’s visit for the failure to dialogue well enough in securing solutions or due to his inability to put our positions to use, it would appear logical. This call is not only illogical, but it also appears as a tool strategically thrown up to disrupt the agenda of the coming visit with all it set out to achieve in the spirit of nation-building which remains the mantra of the 9th Assembly and is considered a joint task.

“In the view of the ninth Assembly, it would remain a call made wrongfully to distract the members whose minds are set on the visit and the expected achievements. It is surprising that Honourable Kingsley Chinda, was among those who insisted on the invitation of the president, probably expecting a gross disregard from the president who surprisingly broke the jinx and kindly obliged our request.

“Isn’t it obvious that apparently shocked by the acceptance of Mr President, he is on a new lonely voyage of personal agenda strange to the legislative agenda of the house and leadership? Where was his constitutional impeachment voice when his previous presidents of PDP extractions were invited but ignored the House, wondering why he is just remembering his constitution now that a president is coming to accept our inputs to the solutions he is seeking?”

Meanwhile, the PDP asserted that the call by its caucus in the House of Representatives asking Nigerians to direct their representatives, across party lines, to commence impeachment process against President

Muhammadu Buhari is constitutional and democratic.

This is contained in a statement issued in Abuja on Monday by Kola Ologbondiyan, National Publicity Secretary, in which it averred that the call is “a direct reflection of the mood and desires of the Nigerian people, given President Buhari, manifest failure in all spheres of governance and particularly in failing to provide an effective leadership that can guarantee the security of our nation and rescue our economy, which has collapsed in his hands.”

The PDP said that, as a party, it had always called on federal legislators in the House of Representatives and the Senate, irrespective of political affiliations, to stand on the side of the people by deploying the legislative instruments provided in the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to rescue the ship of state.

The statement added: “The Buhari administration had already accepted failure as reflected in the declaration by one of its officials, that the nation is now at the mercy of bandits and terrorists, a development that signals that is has out-lived its usefulness.

“President Buhari is elected by the people; his stay in office is also dependent on the people as vested on them by the Constitution, through their elected representatives in the National Assembly.”

The PDP, therefore, urged Nigerians to eschew all primordial sentiments and stand for the nation at this critical time.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE